On Wednesday, 20 March in Brussels, the European Parliament’s Greens/EFA Group indicated that it did not support the post-2020 compromise amendments on the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) that will be voted on in the European Parliament’s Committee on Agriculture on 2 April (see EUROPE 12216/7).
As there are no plans to vote in plenary on the CAP reform during this parliamentary term, newly elected MEPs will resume discussions this autumn, giving EU citizens the opportunity to express their choices on this issue during the May elections, which is in essence what Martin Häusling (Greens/EFA, Germany) told the press.
Environmental programmes. The European Parliament’s Greens/EFA Group advocates a more ambitious reform, particularly with regard to the mandatory cap on aid granted to large companies or on funds allocated to future 'green programmes'. It wants at least 50% of the direct payment allocation to be earmarked for environmental programmes and advocates a strengthening of environmentally friendly cross-compliance measures.
The Greens/EFA Group also opposes the position negotiated between major political groups on the distribution of aid between farmers (it wants a redistribution for the benefit of small businesses) and external convergence (the Greens/EFA Group wants to quickly move to an equivalent level of aid for all EU countries).
The positions of these major groups are contrary to EU environmental and climate requirements and would weaken the new CAP on these issues, Martin Häusling summarises. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)